


After the Funeral

by bryoneybrynn



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Angst, Harry Potter Next Generation, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-14
Updated: 2015-08-14
Packaged: 2018-04-14 14:47:28
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,693
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4568484
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bryoneybrynn/pseuds/bryoneybrynn
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After Ginny Potter's funeral, Scorpius watches a family grieve.</p>
            </blockquote>





	After the Funeral

**Author's Note:**

  * For [snarkyscorp](https://archiveofourown.org/users/snarkyscorp/gifts).



> Written for the ever smoking snarkyscorp requested a Scorpius/James for her fic. The original request was: _James/Scorp: Scorp is friends with Al and spends the night at the Potter house. He flirts with James and is surprised to find James is interested. And smut or really hot snogging occurs._ And I wrote, er, this. Yeah. Sorry about that T. 
> 
> Warnings: Angsty in its fashion, smexing.
> 
> Beta: dysonrules and abusing_sarcasm
> 
> Disclaimer:: This is a work of fanfiction. Harry Potter et al belong to JK Rowling, her publishers and associated movie studios. No profit was made from this work. All characters depicted in sexual situations are above the age of 18.

After the Funeral

Scorpius rolled over with a sigh, pulling the tangle of blankets with him as best he could. He was pants at Transfiguration, always had been. He’d never been overly concerned about it. But after four nights of tossing and turning on the lumpy, uneven mattress he’d transfigured out of one of Albus’s pillows, he was beginning to wish he’d paid more attention in class.

He pushed his pillow around, trying to get comfortable. He gave up after a few minutes. The bed was wretched. There was no help for it. 

He glanced over at Albus. His friend was sound asleep, mouth open, hair wilder than ever and black as ink against the pillow. Looking at him, Scorpius felt a rush of affection. With concern hard on its heels. Not that he expected Albus to be doing well, considering, but it was hard seeing him like this.

Scorpius climbed out of his bed and crossed the room to sit on the edge of Albus’s. His knee banged against the nightstand, setting off a small symphony of tinkling glass - phials, some empty, some still holding dregs of potions. There were at least a dozen of them: sleeping draughts, calming draughts, something blue that Scorpius didn’t recognise, something red that he did recognise and was sure Mr Potter didn’t know Albus was taking. He should probably talk to someone about it. Not Mr Potter; Scorpius had no desire to add to his stress right now. Maybe Albus’s aunt. She had always seemed to be that right mix of level-headed and empathetic. Though she was suffering, too, now...

He sighed and looked down at his sleeping friend. Albus looked pale in a waxy, unhealthy sort of way, and his bottom lip was split and scabbed from being chewed non-stop for days. Scorpius ran a hand through Albus’s hair and then bent to press a kiss to his forehead before leaving the room. Albus didn’t stir. Scorpius closed the door gently behind him as he went. 

The hallway was quiet. He stopped and listened at Lily’s door. He didn’t hear anything. He hoped that meant she was sleeping. James’s door was shut too, no sounds coming from behind it. All was quiet in Mr Potter’s room as well, but Scorpius could see the light seeping out from under the door. Well, at least Mr Potter was back in his bedroom. The first few nights, he’d slept downstairs on the sofa. Scorpius couldn’t blame him. He couldn’t imagine what it would be like to go back to your empty bed after more than twenty years of sharing it with someone. Spending the whole night reaching for someone who wasn't there, who would never be there again.

He made his way down the stairs, grateful for the moonlight coming through the windows, lighting his way. It was strange, walking about Albus’s house in the middle of the night. But his back was going to seize if he lay on that mattress any longer. Maybe he could take over the sofa now that Mr Potter had moved back upstairs.

When he arrived in the family room, though, Scorpius found the sofa was already occupied. He peered through the gloom at the shadowy figure sitting there. “James?”

James started and his head swung around. Visible relief showed on his face when he saw Scorpius. “Hey, Scorpius.” 

Scorpius took a step into the room. “What are you doing up?”

It was a stupid question and James just shrugged in response. “You?”

“Couldn’t sleep.” He kept the bit about his lousy transfiguration skills to himself.

“Albus?”

Scorpius thought of the empty phials on the nightstand. “Out cold.”

“Good.” James nodded lethargically. “Good. He needs some rest.”

“So do you.” 

James didn’t respond, but went back to staring out into the darkness. He looked exhausted. He probably was exhausted. They all were. Scorpius waited a moment longer to see if James was going to speak again. When it appeared he wasn’t, Scorpius turned to head back to the kitchen. Best to give James some space for his grieving.

He was surprised when James called after him.

“You don’t have to go. In fact, you should probably stay.” James held up a half empty bottle of Firewhisky. “I need someone to take this away from me.”

Scorpius gave him a small grin as he stepped back into the room. He took the bottle from James’s hand and set it on a nearby bookshelf before sitting down on the sofa. “So how drunk are you?”

“Not very. It wasn’t a new bottle. I want to get a whole lot drunker, but I don’t know. I feel like I should stay sober in case they need me.” James pushed a hand through his hair, a gesture Scorpius had seen Albus make a million times. He guessed they’d both picked it up from their father. “Hell of a day, huh?”

Scorpius nodded in agreement.

James stared up at the ceiling. “I can’t even imagine what she would have thought of it. Probably would have hated it, all stiff and formal and proper. Mum was never any of those things.”

Scorpius thought of Mrs Potter’s laugh, the way it used to ring through house. He thought of her out in the garden on her broom, still holding her own in a game of Quidditch. “Maybe, but I think she would have understood.”

Another silence fell between them. Scorpius wished he knew the right thing to say. Though, really, there was nothing to say. Mrs Potter was gone and no words could change that.

After a moment, James glanced over at Scorpius, a wry look on his face. “It was weird to see our dads actually being civil to each other.”

“Yeah, who knew they could rise to the occasion?”

“I’m glad your dad is letting you miss school. It’s really helped Al to have you here. Lils too, I think.”

James gave Scorpius a small smile. Scorpius smiled back.

And then James leaned over and kissed him.

For a second, Scorpius did nothing, too stunned to respond. Then his brain kicked in. He started to pull away but James’s hands came up, his fingers tangling in Scorpius’s hair, and held him in place. 

“Please,” James whispered against his mouth. “It doesn’t mean anything. I don’t – I just need...”

Scorpius knew what James was trying to say. “Just this once. I won’t do this to Al.”

James pulled back, his eyes wide. “You two aren’t...?”

Scorpius rolled his eyes. “Your brother is straight, idiot. But he’s my best friend.”

“It’s just that...today...” James trailed off. His eyes were on Scorpius’s mouth.

“I know.” Scorpius pulled James back into the kiss. 

Scorpius tried not to think too much about who he was kissing, about what Al might think were he to find out. Instead, he focused on the feel of James’s mouth against his, slick and hot and wet. He focused on the feeling of James’s hands slipping under his shirt, the slide of his fingers over Scorpius’s ribs, the drag of his fingernails over Scorpius’s nipples. And when James pushed him back on the sofa and climbed on top of him, he focused on the feel of James’s hard cock against his hip.

James never stopped kissing him. He mouthed at Scorpius’s jaw, licked at his collarbone, and bit at his lips, all the while grinding against Scorpius in a hard, desperate rhythm that had Scorpius’s own cock aching in no time at all. Scorpius pushed his hips up against James and felt James’s resultant groan vibrate through him. 

It didn’t take long after that. There had been too much tension the last few days; their bodies needed the release too much. Scorpius came first, grunting softly, muffling the sound against James’s shoulder. James came a moment later, puffing harsh breaths into Scorpius’s ear. 

For a long moment, neither one of them moved. They just lay there, James spread out on top of Scorpius, their breathing slowing, their come cooling and sticky between them. But James was heavy and Scorpius’s arm was at an awkward angle. It was starting to hurt. He shifted a bit against the sofa. 

Taking the hint, James sat up. “Sorry.”

Scorpius sat up, too, and stretched his arm. “S’okay.”

Neither one of them had their wands. James pulled off his t-shirt and used it to clean himself up. Then he handed it to Scorpius to do the same. Scorpius took it wordlessly, folding the messy side in so as to give himself a clean surface to work with. When he was done, he didn’t know what to do with it. It seemed rude somehow, to hand it back but he couldn’t exactly take it back to Albus’s room with him. So he just sat there, staring at the sullied t-shirt in his hand.

“Here.” James held out his hand. “I’ll take care of it.”

“Thanks,” Scorpius said, passing it over. “Um...” 

He wracked his brain for something to say, some way to make an exit that wouldn’t make either of them feel weird.

But James took care of that too. “You heading back to bed?” he asked, somehow managing to keep it from sounding like either an accusation or a dismissal.

“Yeah, I think so. You?”

“No, I think I’ll sit up a bit longer.” 

“Right.” Scorpius nodded and stood. “Well, see you in the morning, then.”

Again, he had almost left the room when James called after him. “Scorpius?”

_Please don’t say thank you, please don’t say thank you._

Steeling himself, Scorpius turned back to face him. “Yes?”

But James just gave him a tight smile and shook his head. “Nothing. Good night.”

“Good night.”

Scorpius climbed the stairs and went back down the hall towards Albus’s room. He entered as quietly as he could. Albus was still fast asleep. Scorpius climbed into his own misshapen bed and pulled the covers up around him. His back began to protest almost immediately. Tomorrow, he’d have to break down and ask someone for help. And he was sure someone would give it to him. It’s just what you did during the hard times.


End file.
